Professional Documents
Culture Documents
in the
United States. We would like to take this opportunity to resend the information to students in case it has been misplaced
in the preceding months, and to provide them the opportunity to share it with their host families. We encourage students
to correspond with FSL directly regarding any questions they may have of the convalidation process.
As part of the program, Foreign Study League Espana will assist with the procedure of convalidation
of studies that you are about to begin in the United States. This procedure will be carried out in front
of the Ministry of Education and Culture, and in order to do so, you must first complete a series or
requirements, including passing your courses taken during the academic year in the US. This
section will explain the process in detail.
In applying for the program, you had to include on the enrollment form what courses you have taken
and the grades you received in those classes prior to this upcoming academic year. This
information has been translated by your American high school so that you are credited for having
taken the classes and that you can take the next level of courses in the US. In a manner of
speaking, they have convalidated your work in Spain.
Therefore it is possible, in specific cases, that the American high school can ask for a curriculum
explanation for courses you have already taken, if they deem it necessary. If this is the case, you
will be directly contacted if you are in the US, or you will be contacted through FSL if it is prior to
your departure from Spain.
You will find big differences between the North American high school and your current school. Here
are some of the most important differences that you will generally find:
• The majority of courses are optional. However, you are still obligated to
study a series of these courses, as will be explained in this section.
• The classroom belongs to the teacher and not the students, so you have to
find the classroom where each class is taught.
• Physical education and sports are a fundamental part of scholarly life. You
should participate in all the ones you can.
• There are numerous clubs and extra-curricular activities in which you can
participate.
• In most cases, the academic year is divided into semesters. The first
semester finishes in the middle of January and the second in mid-June. At the end
of each semester, you will receive credits for the courses you studied. Normally, a
semester is worth half a credit (0.5 credits) per course.
• In some high schools, the year is divided into trimesters, and you receive
credits at the end of each of the trimesters.
• In some cases, high schools follow the BLOCK SYSTEM meaning that class
time for each course is double the normal time. See the section on “Block System” if
your high school follows this system, because this affects convalidation.
Though we suppose that you have already familiarized yourself with the equivalencies of studies in
the United States, it does not hurt to review them:
You should know exactly what is required by the Spanish Ministry of Education and Culture for study
in North American high schools, especially if you are going to study what is equivalent to the
COU/12th grade.
The requirements of study in North American high schools differ from state to state as well as from
school to school. However, certain areas should be focused upon (American History and English
are obligatory) in order to obtain the proper credits.
The Ministry of Education and Culture regulates, in accordance with the Ministerial Order of January
27, 1989, the conditions to convalidate an academic year spent in the United States. Here, in
schematic order, we will explain what this Ministerial Order dictates.
If the year you are going to convalidate is one of these indicated, you will need to study and
pass, during the entire year (both semesters) at least four (4) of the following courses:
These are the generic classifications of courses accepted by the Ministry of Education and
Culture for convalidation. In many North American high schools, there are different names
for specific courses. Later, you will see the courses that are valid. No other courses or their
abbreviations that are not found in this packet will be accepted as a course eligible for
convalidation.
Important notes:
Study and pass, during the entire academic year, at least four (4) of the following
courses. Three of the four courses must pertain to the same group.
Obtain a diploma of graduation from the high school you attend in the US. In cases
where it is not possible to obtain a diploma (some high schools do not issue diplomas to
international students who only study at the school for one year), it is imperative that you
take and pass one (1) extra course during the entire academic year. This course can be
in any particular discipline (it does not have to pertain to either of the aforementioned
groups).
Important notes:
You should take all the courses during both semesters (during the entire academic
year).
If you take more than the four courses necessary to convalidate, you must pass
those as well.
Given that many courses only last one semester, during the second semester you
should take classes that complement the same areas of study material of the first
semester courses as seen in the following pages (i.e. Trigonometry in the first semester
and Geometry in the second. Both courses pertain to the area of Mathematics).
See the later pages to find the courses that are accepted by the Ministry of Education
and Culture.
Courses in the areas of Natural Sciences and Geography are not eligible for
convalidation for COU or 2° de Bachiller/12th grade.
YOU MUST PASS ALL YOUR CLASSES (WHETHER OR NOT THEY ARE
ELIGBLE FOR CONVALIDATION). A NON-PASSING GRADE ON YOUR
TRANSCRIPT WILL RENDER YOU INELIGIBLE FOR CONVALIDATION.
Block system
As we have mentioned before, some high schools follow what is called the “block system” or
“compressed schedule”.
This system can be differentiated from the normal course of study in that class time lasts 90
minutes (approximately) instead of the normal 45 minutes. Therefore, in one semester, the
content of one academic year is covered.
If this is the case in your high school, it will not be necessary to take the 4 courses eligible for
convalidation during the entire year. It is sufficient to take these courses in one semester.
The Ministry of Education and Culture accepts this system without any problems when the
school issues a letter explaining that they are on the “block system” or “compressed
schedule”.
We will explain what information needs to appear in the documentation you bring from the
United States for convalidation.
It is extremely important that you pay attention to the given information regarding the documentation
that you need to obtain and the points that the documentation must include. You must follow every
minute detail regarding these steps because without any one of these details, FSL will not be able to
present your case for convalidation to the Ministry of Education and Culture. It is YOUR
RESPONSIBILITY that you obtain the documents that we ask of you and that they are correctly
prepared:
a) Official school transcript of grades. The official school document that indicates the courses
you studied, with the grades received during the entire school year. On this document, the
following information should be included:
b) School letter. In cases where any one of the aforementioned details does not appear in the
transcript, you must obtain a letter that mentions the omitted points. This letter should be
signed by the director of the school and include the school seal.
c) Course summary. You should obtain an explanation of each of the courses studied. The
letter should include the signature of a school official as well as the school seal.
d) Block schedule. If you have studied under this system at your American high school, you
need to obtain a letter from the school explaining the system. It should explain that the
classes lasted 90 minutes and in one semester you receive one (1) credit per course. That
is to say, you completed one yearlong course in one semester.
e) Official graduation diploma. Only for students who will convalidate 12th grade for COU/2º
Bachiller.
f) Photocopies. Once you have obtained the original documents (official transcript of grades
and letter(s)), you need to obtain three (3) good photocopies of every original
document. Every photocopy should include an original school seal and an original
signature of the head of the high school.
a) Notary Public. Now that you have the documents (originals and photocopies), you need
to find a Notary Public to notarize them. All of the documents, including the photocopies,
have to be notarized by the same Notary. In many cases, a high school will have a Notary
Public on staff.
The Notary Public must include on each document (originals and photocopies), the following:
Make sure that the Notary Public includes these points on each document, because the
omission of any one of these points will mean that you will need to go back to that Notary to
have it re-notarized.
Even if the Notary knows how to do this, we recommend that you show this example of
notarization so that there is no mistake:
The states of Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, New York, North Carolina, Ohio
and Tennessee require an additional document that we indicate in the following point.
Notice that for each document legalized, the Notary has indicated the county. You should go
to the County Clerk in the indicated county with all your notarized documents (originals and
photocopies).
This certification by the County Clerk is absolutely necessary to obtain the SECRETARY OF
STATE APOSTILLE OF LA HAGUE (the document that will be explained in the following
section).
No document will be considered legalized (in the states mentioned above) if they do
not have the certification of the County Clerk and the Notary Public.
This document is absolutely necessary to obtain your convalidation. It can be obtained from the
Secretary of State of the American State where you have studied and lived. The Secretary of
State’s office verifies that the official school transcript of grades and the official and original
graduation diploma (for 12th graders) in accordance with the laws of the state, are correctly
legalized and the signature and seal of the Notary (or County Clerk in some cases) are valid.
In order to obtain the Apostille of La Hague, you need to contact the Secretary of State in your
American State by visiting the office or by mail. In appendix A, you will find the addresses and
phone numbers for the Secretary of State in your state. Before visiting the office or sending
anything to the Secretary of State, you should call the listed phone number to confirm the
address, the cost of processing the Apostille, and the turn-around time in which they issue the
Apostille.
If you prefer to obtain the Apostille of La Hague by traceable mail (i.e. certified mail, UPS), you
should send the following materials:
The Secretary of State will send by certified mail or courier to the address on the prepared
envelope the Apostille with the official school transcript of grades and/or legalized diploma.
Please be aware that the use of a courier is substantially more expensive than using certified
mail. However, we suggest that you use a form of mail that can be tracked.
The safest plan of action is to contact the Secretary of State to verify how to obtain an Apostille
by mail, the address to send the request, the cost to process the documents and how long the
process will take.
NOTE: Remember that in the states of Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, New York,
Ohio, and Tennessee require the certification of a County Clerk.
In order to facilitate the work that is entailed in obtaining these documents, we suggest you make
a checklist of this process so that you do not miss any steps. Remember that the omission of
any one of these steps will render your Apostille request and subsequent convalidation invalid.
Be aware that you need to follow each of the rules and instructions indicated in the preceding pages
as well as follow the deadlines indicated. If we receive documentation that is incomplete or
incorrect, it will be your responsibility to obtain new and corrected documentation.
If you have any questions or if you need help, call FSL in Madrid at 91 781 99 10.
Do not rush through this process. Go through it step by step. It is much easier than you think. It is
simply a question of following each step carefully.
The process is just as described in the preceding pages. However, you need to not only obtain an
official school transcript of grades, but an Official Graduation Diploma as well.
a) Official graduation diploma. This is the document that the high school gives crediting
that you have graduated. On the diploma, your full name should appear correctly spelled
and without abbreviation.
If you do not receive a diploma of graduation and instead receive another document such as
a Certificate of Attendance, Certificate of Completion, Certificate of Graduation, or Honorary
Diploma, you need to obtain a school letter, signed by a school official and sealed, that
indicates exactly what is described below:
(Your full name) was a foreign exchange student enrolled in 12th grade during the school year 2005-2006.
APPENDIX A
He/She did not receive a graduation diploma because it is the policy of our school not to award a diploma to students
MODEL OF LEGALIZATION
enrolled in a foreign FOR A
exchange program. NOTARY
A diploma PUBLIC
is awarded INrequirements
if the THE STATE OFfour-year
of the CALIFORNIA
program are
completed.
Here is an example of how original and photocopied documents should be notarized, in accordance
with the laws of the state of California.
In order to notarize documents, an authorized individual from the high school must be present along
with a notary public. The individual from the school will certify that the documents are authentic and
that the notary will legalize them. Make sure that the notary legalizes the documents in this way.
This is absolutely necessary in order to obtain an Apostille of La Hague.
You can show the notary this example so that he/she knows how the notarized document must
appear:
According to the laws of the Secretary of the State of California, the notarization of this document
has to include the following statement in order to obtain the Apostille:
Here is an example of how original and photocopied documents should be notarized, in accordance
with the laws of the state of Colorado.
In order to notarize documents, an authorized individual from the high school must be present along
with a notary public. The individual from the school will certify that the documents are authentic and
that the notary will legalize them. Make sure that the notary legalizes the documents in this way.
This is absolutely necessary in order to obtain an Apostille of La Hague.
You can show the notary this example so that he/she knows how the notarized documents must
appear, DEPENDING IF THE DOCUMENT IS AN ORIGINAL OR A PHOTOCOPY.
This document has been subscribed and affirmed before me in the county of
_______ State of Colorado, this day of __________, 2006.
Notary Seal/Stamp
Signature of Notary
My commission expires on
According to the laws of the Secretary of the State of Colorado, the notarization
of this copy of original document has to include the following statement in order to
obtain the Apostille:
Here is an example of how original and photocopied documents should be notarized, in accordance
with the laws of the state of Arizona.
This state requires that the high school and the notary must indicate the following as noted in the
box below. You should show this example to the school and the notary so that they know how to
replicate it exactly. Make sure that this type of notarization takes place with all your documents
(originals and photocopies). Realize that the omission of any one of the details shown below may
mean that you will need to return to the notary and have the documentation legalized again.
Two statements are required by the State of Arizona in order to obtain an Apostille. The school must
place statement #1 to the original and the copies of the documents. The Notary must place statement
#2 to the original and the copies of the documents.
This is to certify that (name of document) is a true copy of the (name of document) earned by
(student’s name) in satisfaction of the requirements of the course of study prescribed by the Board of
Education for (name of High School).
Signature of registrar
Typed name
Title
School
Address
--------------------------------------------------
STATE OF ARIZONA
COUNTY OF
Affix Seal
Notary Signature
APPENDIX E Expiration date of Commission
APPENDIX D
MODEL OF LEGALIZATION FOR A NOTARY PUBLIC IN THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA
APPENDIX D
MODEL OF LEGALIZATION FOR A NOTARY PUBLIC IN THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA
In the state of Oklahoma the process of notarization is quite distinct from other US states, but it is no
more complicated. In this case, they differentiate between original documents and the photocopies.
In the box below, you will find instructions for the Notary to follow.
Show this page to the Notary and make sure that they follow this method of legalization FOR
EVERY DOCUMENT, whether they are originals or photocopies. Omitting any one of these details
may mean that you will need to return to the notary to have it all legalized again.
State of Oklahoma
County of _________________
---------------------------------------
State of Oklahoma
County of __________
(Date)
In the state of Missouri, the process of notarization is distinct from other states, but it is no more
complicated.
In the box below, you will find instructions for the Notary to follow.
Show this page to the Notary and the high school, and make sure that they follow this method of
legalization FOR EVERY DOCUMENT, whether they are originals or photocopies. Omitting any one
of these details may mean that you will need to return to the notary to have it all legalized again.
Required statement from the school authority placed on the back of the document
I, (name of authority), (title), certify that this is a copy of an original (name of document)
presented to (name of student) on (month/day/year).
Required statement from the Notary Public placed on the back of the document
On this _________ day of __________ month in the year 2006, before me, the undersigned Notary
Public personally appeared (name of school authority) known to me to be the person whose name is
subscribed to the written instrument and acknowledged that (he/she) executed the same for the purposes
therein contained.
In the state of Wisconsin, the process for notarization is distinct from other states, but it is no more
complicated. In this case, the original documents and their photocopies are differentiated.
In the box below, you will find instructions for the Notary to follow.
Show this page to the Notary, and make sure that they follow this method of legalization FOR
EVERY DOCUMENT, whether they are originals or photocopies. Omitting any one of these details
may mean that you will need to return to the notary to have it all legalized again.
A. For witnessing or attesting a Signature this statement must appear on original documents. A school
official must sign the document in the presence of the Notary Public.
State of Wisconsin
County of _______________________
State of Wisconsin
County of _______________________
I certify that this is a true copy of a document in possession of (name of person possessing original
document)
Dated ______________
Date: _______________
Enclosed please find documents required to receive an Apostille of La Hague for (student’s name).
You will also find a check in the amount of $_______ as payment for processing the Apostille(s).
The documents with the Apostille are required by the Spanish Ministry of Education and Culture in
order to validate my academic year in the US.
Thank you for your assistance and prompt attention to this request.
Sincerely,
(your name)
APPENDIX H
LIST OF COURSES ELIGIBLE FOR CONVALIDATION AND THEIR CORRESPONDING
SUBJECTS IN ENGLISH
Geogrofía Geography
Physical Geography
Social Geography
Latín Latin
Filosofía Philosophy
Ethics
Sociology
Psychology
Anthropology
Man Measure
Matemáticas Mathematics
Analysis
Math. Analysis
Arithmetic
Algebra
Geometry
Elementary Functions
Calculus
Precalculus
Trigonometry
Computer Math
Física Physics
Lab. Physics
Physical Science
Química Chemistry
Lab. Chemistry
APPENDIX I
SELECTION OF COURSES
Full name:
Address in the United States:
Telephone number in the US:
Fax number where we may reach you:
E-mail address where we may reach you:
Name of high school:
Address of high school:
Telephone number of high school:
If you are convalidating COU or 2° Bachiller/12th grade, is the school going to give you an official
diploma of graduation? (Circle one)
YES NO
YES NO
Indicate the exact names of the courses that you will be taking. Please complete this section in
English, as they will appear on your official transcript for the academic year.